Prior attempts to treat starch in aqueous mixture processes with siliconate salts to develop water repellency (hydrophobicity) have resulted in undesirable properties and/or commercial disadvantages.
The following embodiments are presented to further illustrate and explain the present invention and should not be taken as limiting in any regard. All percents used are on a weight/weight basis unless otherwise specified.    1. A method comprising the steps of:            mixing a siliconate solution and a starch to form a siliconate solution/starch mixture,                    wherein the siliconate solution comprises a siliconate,            wherein the siliconate percentage of the siliconate solution/starch mixture is at least 0.5%;            wherein the total moisture of the siliconate solution/starch mixture is at least 5% and not greater than 50%; and                        sufficiently mixing the mixture to result in a hydrophobic starch mixture.            2. The method of embodiment 1, further comprising mixing water with the siliconate solution and the starch to form a siliconate solution/starch mixture.    3. The method of embodiment 1 or 2, wherein the total moisture of the siliconate solution/starch mixture is at least 10% and not greater than 30%.    4. The method of any one of embodiments 1-3, further comprising the step of drying the hydrophobic starch mixture to result in a dried hydrophobic starch with a residual moisture content of 0-18% (w/w).    5. The method of embodiment 4, wherein the residual moisture content is from 7 to 14% (w/w).    6. The method of any one of embodiments 1-5, wherein the hydrophobic starch mixture exhibits a hydrophobicity of no more than 3 ml as assessed by the following test: add 75 ml of water to a Goetz type centrifuge tube; add 5 g of the hydrophobic starch mixture; invert the centrifuge tube 10 times without causing splashing, where “invert” is intended to mean turning the tube upside down and then back to original position over a period of at least three seconds; allow the centrifuge tube to sit for 30 minutes; slowly invert the centrifuge tube 10 more times without splashing; allow the centrifuge tube to sit another 30 minutes; and record the volume of settled starch in the centrifuge tube.    7. The method of embodiment 6, wherein the dried hydrophobic starch exhibits a hydrophobicity of no more than 0.8 ml.    8. The method of any one of embodiments 1-7, wherein the siliconate solution is comprised of a methyl siliconate salt.    9. The method of any one of embodiments 1-8, wherein the hydrophobic starch mixture is free flowing.    10. A product prepared in accordance with the method of any one of embodiments 1-9.    11. A method comprising the steps of:            Mixing a siliconate solution and a starch to form a siliconate solution/starch mixture,                    wherein the siliconate solution comprises a siliconate,            wherein the siliconate percentage of the siliconate solution/starch mixture is at least 0.5%;            wherein the total moisture of the siliconate solution/starch mixture is at least 5% and not greater than 50%; and                        sufficiently mixing the mixture to result in a free-flowing starch mixture.            12. A product prepared in accordance with the method of embodiment 11.    13. The method of embodiment 9 or 11, wherein the resultant starch mixture has a starch pile diameter of at least 7.0 cm when tested as set forth in Example 4.